Dec 11, 2007

A short distance from Sydney are the most beautiful limestone caves that lie beneath 2,422 hectares of unspoilt bushland. These limestone caves are one of the most amazing works of nature. A true under the world wonder!

The Lucas Cave at Jenolan Caves.

The Grand Column.

Small shawls.

The Minaret.

Imperial Cave.

The entrance to Nettle Cave, Circa 1888.

Blue Lake, Jenolan.

View through Carlotta Arch, Jenolan.

The Jenolan Caves are a series of remarkable caverns in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia; 175 kilometers west of Sydney. They are the most celebrated of several similar groups in the limestone of the country being the oldest discovered open caves in the world. They have not yielded fossils of great interest but the stalactitic formations, sometimes, pure white, are of extraordinary beauty. Major portions of the caves have been rendered easily accessible to paying visitors and are well lit.

The Lucas Cave: The Lucas is the cave that most people visit at Jenolan.
If you only have time to visit one cave, the Lucas is the best general cave, offering the visitor both the highest and widest chambers at Jenolan as well as a glimpse of the underground river.
The highest chamber is 54 meters, scene of many weddings and Concerts in the Caves.
The Chamber has arguably the best acoustics of any performance space in the world. The acoustical properties of this chamber have been utilized by Dame Joan Sutherland and The Vienna Boys Choir.

Anteroom - For many people this is their first taste of what a cave is like.

The tallest chamber at Jenolan, measures just over 54m high. The highlight is when music is played to sample the underground acoustics. Marriages are frequently performed within this chamber.

Slide - Folklore tells of how early visitors were placed upon sacks and sent sliding down this large passageway, descending by the light of a candle. At the bottom of the Slide is the Exhibition Chamber, which is the largest chamber at Jenolan, being about the same area as a small football field.

At one time this column would have reached from the roof to the floor but subsidence of the rockpile, which forms the floor has caused it to break in half.

Mafeking Chamber - This chamber was found 40 years after the Lucas Cave was found. It was discovered when guides squeezed their way up through a rockpile. This is the prettiest section of the cave.

Terraces - The Terraces are a series of beautiful cascades of flowstone. View can also be had back across the chamber.

Underground River - For many people, this is the highlight of the tour. Whilst the river may appear to be a large body of water it is in fact part of the underground river that formed this cave. It is a beautiful blue-green color and flows 20m below a bridge that the tour crosses.

Bone Cave - At one time many animal bones littered this chamber but early visitors unfortunately took these with them. For many visitors the highlight of this area is the mass of colored lights. It is a short walk from this area back to the surface and the edge of the Blue Lake.